As Pride Month kicks off, there is a growing movement of activists working to call out queer organizations for pinkwashing and asking them not to take money from companies who have financial ties to Israel’s current military operation in Gaza.
In recent weeks, activist groups around the world have been calling on Pride organizations to show solidarity with Palestine and divest from sponsors and affiliations with companies that, in the words of one group, “enable the occupation and ethnic cleansing of Palestine.” Al Jazeera reports that as of June 9 at least 37,084 people in Gaza have been killed and 84,494 injured in Israel’s war on Gaza since October. This comes after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7—some 1,200 Israelis were killed, and more than 200 were taken hostage.
A collective of queer groups in the U.S. led by the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity and the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights is calling on Pride parades and national queer organizations to immediately ban corporations that support Israel’s military efforts from sponsoring or participating in Pride events.
And meanwhile, across pond, a collective of British queer groups including Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants, Queers for Palestine, London Trans+ Pride and ACT UP London have called on London Pride to cut ties with Israel-affiliated sponsors.
Some large Pride organizations have actually already taken steps in this direction. Copenhagen Pride released a statement back in February expressing solidarity with Palestine and concern over its sponsors’ ties to Israeli companies, especially those operating in the West Bank.
Senior editor Mel Woods breaks down what you need to know.
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